SENIOR Tories have joined opposition MPs to demand the Downing Street partygate report is published in full, while the SNP said the “never-ending sleaze” engulfing Westminster is “making the case for independence”.
As the wait for the highly anticipated Sue Gray inquiry report continued, a backbench Tory MP became the first to announce he intends to stand for leader if Boris Johnson is voted out.
The Prime Minister could get sight of the findings of the report this weekend, after police insisted they had not delayed its publication.
But the Metropolitan Police has been criticised for urging Gray to limit the publication of her investigation into allegations of lockdown-breaking parties at Number 10 and make “minimal reference” to events they are looking at. Downing Street has pledged to publish Gray’s report “as they receive it”.
Tory MP Sir Christopher Chope accused the Met Police of an “abuse of power” and accused the police of interfering with Gray’s investigation.
He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme it was not right to ask for changes as it was not “sub judice” – referring to active legal proceedings that prohibit public discussion.
“If they had brought charges about individuals ... then it would obviously be sub judice,” he added.
“That’s why I think this is an abuse of power by the Metropolitan Police.”
Former attorney general and Labour peer Lord Morris of Aberavon said he was “dismayed” with the “vacillating” of the Met Police.
He said: “Surely it is in the public interest that major concerns over events in Downing Street be investigated and reported on.
“Any prejudice that might result in fines would be a disproportionate concern.”
Senior Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood also warned that any redacted or watered down report would not “go down well with colleagues” and the public wanted to see the government was on the “road to change”.
Labour, the LibDems and the SNP have all called for the report to be published without omissions.
SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford said the “never-ending stream of sleaze, corruption and constant chaos that has engulfed Westminster” was making the case for independence.
“The sleaze-ridden Westminster system has proven it is broken beyond repair. Whether it’s Tory cuts, corruption, or the soaring cost of Brexit, it’s clear Westminster isn’t capable of acting in Scotland’s interests,” he said.
“People in Scotland are paying an increasingly painful price for Westminster control.
“The majority of families will be hundreds or thousands of pounds worse off this year as a result of Westminster failure and Brexit is costing us billions.”
He added: “Removing Boris Johnson from office is the right thing to do but a change of Prime Minister alone isn’t sufficient to deliver the change that Scotland needs.
“Independence is the only way to escape the broken Westminster system for good, and it is the only way to secure the full powers Scotland needs to build a fairer society.”
It is widely believed that either Chancellor Rishi Sunak or Foreign Secretary Liz Truss are frontrunners to win the top job if the Prime Minister is ousted.
Yesterday it was reported Sunak has already built a dummy campaign website as he prepares for a leadership bid.
But it has also been reported that centrist Tories are backing ex-soldier and Foreign Affairs Committee chairman Tom Tugendhat as “the best chance for a fresh start”.
Tugendhat, who criticised the UK Government’s handling of the withdrawal from Afghanistan, told Times Radio yesterday: “I think I’m making it pretty clear that I think that it’s up to all of us to put ourselves forward. And it’s up to the electorate, in the first case parliamentary colleagues, and in the second case the party, to choose.”
Johnson reportedly sees himself in a stronger position now than a week ago. The Times has revealed that following Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday and vocal backing from the benches behind him, Johnson returned to his Commons office with a fist-pump celebration and said: “Come on! Good noise from the colleagues.”
As questions persist over his future, it is understood Johnson will “ramp up deterrence to avoid bloodshed” between Russia and Ukraine with a visit to the region in the coming days.
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